Improvement in wool-carding machines



KFETERS. PHOTO-LITHOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON. D C,

UNITED STATES ATENT EEICE.

IMPROVEMENT IN WOOL-CAR'DING MACHINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 15,016, dated June 3, 1856.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, FosfrEn NoWELL, of Lowell, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Uondensing Roving from Gaming-Machines; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof.

The description of carding machines to which my improvements are applicable is that in which the flotter-cylinders are covered alternately with rings of card-clothing and vacant spaces of equal width. The wool or other material ou the rings of card-cloth ing is to be gathered into roving, and to accomplish this object it is common to use tubes through which the strand ot' roving is drawn, and by giving the tubes a high velocity of revolution the strand is gathered into roving as it is drawn through the tubes. Itis also common to use what are termed rubbers, which ordinarily consist of a roll of the length of the dott'er-cylinder, and which is made to revolve in a direction to draw the roving from the doffer. Above this roll, and resting upon it, are two othersimilar rolls, which have given to them a positive motion forward and back in the direction of their axes, and which receive from their contact with the lower roll a revolving motion. The roving is passed between the ripper vibrating rolls and the lower rotating rolls and receives its condensing, so that when the roving is delivered from between the rolls itis in the form of a round strand suitable to be wound upon a spool without danger of its becoming entangled with other strands when it is unwound from the spool to be spun into yarn.

Both these processes e'ect the purpose to a certain extent, but have defects in operation and result, and it is the object of my improvements to control such defects.

In the use of rubbing and drawing rolls the roving is only acted upon while between the bite of the rolls, which of course extends only through a short length on the roving, and the ends of the fibers not being held at the same time with any considerable part of theirlength are not sufficiently tucked into the body of the roving by the condensing action. In all carding-machines using any condensing apparatus consisting of rubbing-rolls there are several strands which pass between the same rolls,

l being at intervals in their length, and as the rolls all have rigid surfaces. it' the strands are not ofthe saine size, or it' by accident two strands should come together, the surfaces ot' the rolls would not bear with a proper degree of force upon some of the strands, and the condensing would not be properly done. From thefact that the roving is acted upon only at the point ot'the bite of the rolls it becomes necessary to give a very quick vibratory motion in order to condense as much roving` as the card is capable of working, and in some cases a vibration ot' two hundred and tt'ry times per minute has` been found to be insnt ficient, but by increasing the number of rolls this has been partially remedied at the expense of more parts and greater wear.

My improvements consist in the use of two surfaces, one ot' which is rigid and the other yielding, between which the sliver is conducted and condensed, by which means the strands are all acted upon, notwithstanding they may be of unequal size, and in the form ot' these surfaces the sliver is made to be held and acted upon by them at one time to the extent,in the length of the sliverot' six, eight. or teil inches, which is more than the length of ordinary bers of wool. f

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l represents au en d elevation ofthe right-hand end of my apparatus. Fig. 2 represents a front elevation with the lower rubbingcylinder in section. Fig. 3 represents an end elevation ofthe left-hand end.

rThe same letters refer to the saine parts in all the tgures.

A, Fig. l, is the main cylinder of the card, and B B the vring dotler-cylinders, which are constructed in the usual manner. The workingcylinders, fancy cylinders, feeding-rolls, and many other parts are not represented, and will not be described, as they are not essential to a clear understanding of my improvements.

The (iOffer-cylinders, as is well known, have card-teethin rings from one-half an inch to two inches in width, according to the work being done, and then a space ofthe same width, alternately, the card-teeth on the upper dot'fer Vbeinfr o )osite the s aces on the lower one and vice versa. The upper dolfer takes from Thus the rings of card-clothing on both doft'ers are continually supplied with wool, and the object of the apparatus is to gather this wool into suitable strands of roving that it may be spun into yarn.

On the shaft of the main cylinder of the card there is a bevel-gear, C, which drives other ones,D, F, and G,thus moving the crank-shaft H. This crank-shaft has at each end a disk, into which are inserted crank-pins I I. Crankrods J J connect the crank-pins with the boxes K K, as shown in section on Fig. 3. This arrangement gives an end-longvibratory motion to the rubbing-cylinders L L.

On the left-hand end of the card, Fig. 3, the (iOffer-cylinders are driven in the direction designated by the arrows by means of the beltM andthespur-wheelsOO. Similarspur-wheels, P P, are put upon the shafts of the rubbingcylinders L L, but are not fastened to them but the spur-wheels have a spline-groove, and the shafts have in them a spline, which arrangement allows the shalt to have an cndlong movement in the hub of the spur-wheel, but will not allow the wheels P P to revolve without revolving the rubber-cylinders L L. The-wheels 0 and P are ofthe same size; but I make the rubber-cylinder a little larger in diameter than the doft'er-cylinder B B, in order that the roving may be stretched or drawn a little.

By the mechanism last described the rubhing-cylinders L L are made to revolve, and

by the mechanism at the right-hand end, previously described, they are made to vibrateim the direction ot' their axes, thus `having two distinct positive motions, one rotary and the other vibratory,

The surfaces of the rubber-cylinders are covered by winding closely about them cotton banding or cord, which produces an indented and somewhat rough surface, and more readily acts to roll the sliver than a leather surface.

Two rolls, R R, (of the same length as the (lutter-cylinder and two or three inches shorter than the rubbi 11g-cylinders L L,) are supported in bearings S S, and one is driven by means ot' gears, as shown at U in red ink, Fig. 3. These rolls have around them a belt or apron,

T T, the upper part. of which extends in a straight line from the top of the roll to the top ot' the other, and thelower part of the belt takes the form of the curve ot' the outside circumference of the rubbing-cylinder. This belt is moved by the geared roll R. In the circumference of the rolls R E, and near each end, 1 cut a groove about one inch wide, and on the inside ot' the aprons I fasten strips of leather, so that they will run in the grooves and keep the belt from vibrating on the rolls and hold it in place. The rolls nearest to the doffercylinders are adjusted so that the outside ot' the apron will just clear the ends ofthe teeth ot the dofter-cylnder, and the other roll is placed so as to give the requisite form and tension to the apron. As the woolv on"the rings otl card-clothingof the doffer comes to the apron on the rolls R lt the apron wipes it oft' from the rings in the form ot' ribbons or slivers and conducts it between the apron and the rubbing-cylinder, where by the vibration of the rubbing-cylinder they are each gathered and rolled into a round strand ot' roving, and afterward ejected from between the rubbing-cylinder and the apron in a condition suitable to be wound upon spools in the usual manner; and from the working of' a machine constructed at'- ter this manner I find that the number ot' "ibrations necessary with the long frictional surface between the belt and the rubbingcylinder is about one-fourth ofthe number of vibrations with the use ct' rubbingrolls in the method now in common use.

Having thus described my improvements and the mode of operating them, what l claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Paten t, is-

The use in carding-machines ot' two surfaces for cond ucting and rubbing the sliver from the ring-(loft'ers, one ot' which is cylindrical and ot' permanent form and the other a belt or apron of flexible material and capable of adjusting itselt' tothe shape of thel cylindrical rubber and the sliver or roving between itself and the cylindrical rubber, substantially as described.

' FOSTER. NOVVELL.

VitneSSeS:

SHUBAEL P. ADAMs, I. XV. LUCAS. 

